Lake County home sales slowed in September, as home prices increase according to information gathered from the Lake County Multiple Listing Service (MLS).
Closed escrow sales of homes in Lake County totaled 57 units in September, according to the MLS. Sales in September dropped 21.9 percent from 73 in August and were down 19.7 percent from 71 in September 2013. September marked the 29th straight month that sales were below the 100 level and the third straight month that sales have declined on a year-over-year basis.
“All of the current market indicators point to a more balanced real estate market,” said California Association of Realtors (C.A.R.) President Kevin Brown. “With market competition cooling down, buyers” and sellers” expectations are more in line with each other. The sales price-to-list price ratio is moving toward a more normal level of nearly 98 percent, as compared to 100 percent a year ago, when the market saw a frenzy of multiple offers. The drop in the ratio implies that sellers are pricing more realistically.”
The median price of a Lake County home increased 7.5 percent from August”s median price of $172,000 to $185,000 in September and was up 27.6 percent from $145,000 recorded in September 2013. The countywide median home price has been higher on a year-over-year basis for more than two years. The median sales price is the point at which half of homes sold for more and half sold for less; it is influenced by the types of homes selling as well as a general change in values.
“September”s sales increase and tempering in home price gains suggest optimism as we head into the slower home buying season,” said C.A.R. Vice President and Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young. “Home prices are stabilizing, and the year-to-year sales decline is at the lowest level we”ve seen in the last 12 months. The cooling price growth and recent drops in mortgage rates will ease housing affordability and help to improve sales in the final months of the year.”
Other key facts from Lake County”s September housing report include:
• Housing inventory declined from 481 in August to 452 in September, with the available supply of existing, single-family detached homes for sale increasing from 6.6 months in August to 7.8 months in September. The index was six months in September 2013. The index indicates the number of months needed to sell the supply of homes on the market at the current sales rate. A six- to seven-month supply is considered typical in a normal market.
• The median number of days it took to sell a single-family home declined in September, from 102 days in August to 59 days in September and 81 days in September 2013.
• Mortgage rates rose slightly in September, with the 30-year, fixed-mortgage interest rate averaging 4.16 percent, up from 4.12 percent in August but down from 4.49 percent in September 2013, according to Freddie Mac. Adjustable-mortgage interest rates in September were also up, averaging 2.43 percent, up from 2.37 percent in August but down from 2.67 percent in September 2013.
Ray Perry is the 2013 Realtor of the Year for Lake County and can be reached at 277-8000.
